Post by bluepenquin on Nov 2, 2014 20:46:58 GMT -5
Who cares who Texas or Stanford, or anyone else beat? Yes, Penn State is better now, than they were at the start of the year. Sure, Texas, Stanford and Washington are also, but all discussions should center on how teams are playing NOW.
For my money, and I watch a lot of games on the PAC 12, Big 10, and Big 12 network, no one is playing with more intensity on every point than Wisconsin. It feels like there is very little they can't block or dig, and Carlini is growing in leaps and bounds as a player. I'm a Penn State fan, and they will have to play at a very high level to repeat their success this year. There are just too many moments when they lose their intensity, or mentally relax. Stanford, Washington, and Texas have moments when they lose focus. This could kill them all in the tournament.
I could see where one watching matches may see Wisconsin as a better team right now than Washington, Stanford, and PSU - Wisconsin has lost the fewest sets in conference (4) than any of the other teams. They have won a higher % of points. Relative to the competition they have played - they have outplayed any of the other 3 teams. But emphasis on 'relative to the competition'. It would appear that Washington and Stanford have played a significantly tougher conference schedule. I am not sure there is much difference between the top 2 teams in the conference - but there is a huge difference in the middle and bottom of the two conferences.
In my mind, Washington clearly has the best resume thus far (not taking into account wins and losses). And since they are also undefeated... Statistically (in terms of game scores), they look a lot like Penn State from the past couple seasons - just a tad better than anyone else.